Tendon injuries are among the most common and welfare-significant conditions in performance horses, with long recovery times and high reinjury rates.
Tendon injuries cause significant pain and sustained welfare compromise in affected horses. The anatomy of equine tendons makes healing inherently difficult, and the pressure to return horses to competition before full biological repair is complete creates a cycle of reinjury and cumulative damage. From a welfare standpoint, rehabilitation requires careful pain management throughout, appropriate controlled exercise to stimulate tendon repair without overstressing healing tissue, and honest assessment of prognosis. In horses where the injury is severe or recurrent, the welfare question of whether continued competition life is appropriate — versus retirement or rehoming to low-demand work — deserves honest consideration rather than purely economic decision-making.